This new poinsettia cultivar originated as a sport induced by mutation of the cultivar `H518` in a greenhouse in Encinitas, Calif. It was selected because of its dark flower bracts, dark green foliage, compact growth habit and self-branching traits which distinguish it from other poinsettia cultivars, and seem to make it a desirable plant for commercial greenhouse production. The new cultivar differs from Gutbier V-10, for example, in that the color intensity of the foliage and the bracts is significantly greater. Under post-production environments, there is much better leaf and bract retention in cultivar `456` compared with `V-10`. After selection, stem cuttings of cultivar `456` were vegetatively reproduced for test purposes in Encinitas, Calif., and clones of the plant were subjected to successive generations of vegetative propagation which demonstrated that its distinct characteristics hold true from generation to generation.